Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Longyan and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Longyan: $465 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

22

Cost of Living Index in Longyan
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Longyan Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Longyan

🇨🇳 China

$465

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Longyan and in Chiang Mai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Longyan and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $465 per month in Longyan vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Longyan $465
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $754 per month in Longyan vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Longyan $754
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,044 per month in Longyan vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Longyan $1,044
Chiang Mai $1,979

Longyan is about 50% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Longyan and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Longyan 66% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.94 ¥19.51

$2.24 ฿75.6

31.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.79 ¥151

$19.00 ฿641

19.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.93 ¥32.77

$5.55 ฿187

-11.17%

Cappuccino

$2.29 ¥15.22

$1.67 ฿56.5

37.13%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.44 ¥2.91

$0.64 ฿21.54

-31.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.31 ฿10.31

-6.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.87 ¥5.76

$2.36 ฿79.5

-63.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ¥10.81

$3.66 ฿124

-55.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 ¥13.33

$1.95 ฿65.7

3.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ¥9.75

$1.44 ฿48.46

2.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.12

$1.33 ฿45.03

-42.11%

Eggs

$1.52 ¥10.08

$2.28 ฿77.1

-33.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.62 ¥50.7

$16.45 ฿555

-53.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.19 ¥14.56

$2.78 ฿93.9

-21.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.46 ¥62.9

$9.31 ฿314

1.61%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 ¥12.22

$2.35 ฿79.4

-21.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 ¥8.87

$0.97 ฿32.79

37.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 ¥11.80

$1.60 ฿53.9

11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.08 ¥7.21

$1.50 ฿50.6

-28.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.04

$1.28 ฿43.11

-28.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 ¥6.70

$1.10 ฿37.18

-8.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 ¥3.12

$0.71 ฿23.82

-33.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ¥3.41

$0.49 ฿16.36

4.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.44 ¥22.84

$4.14 ฿140

-16.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.20 ¥81.1

$17.52 ฿591

-30.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ¥5.10

$1.61 ฿54.5

-52.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 ¥8.13

$2.78 ฿93.9

-56.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.15 ¥1.00

$0.87 ฿29.30

-82.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 ¥6.78

$1.16 ฿39.04

-12.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.51 ¥3.37

$0.53 ฿17.80

-3.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.38 ¥49.03

$2.42 ฿81.7

204.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ¥8.86

$1.45 ฿48.88

-8.28%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$19.5K ¥129.5K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

-7.47%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$15.6K ¥103.7K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

-42.08%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$67.6 ¥449

$62.2 ฿2,098

8.70%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$15.77 ¥105

$12.17 ฿411

29.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.78 ¥58.4

$20.12 ฿679

-56.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.39 ¥29.16

$3.77 ฿127

16.45%

Cinema Ticket

$7.56 ¥50.3

$6.49 ฿219

16.49%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$213 ¥1,417

$736 ฿24.8K

-71.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ¥79.3K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-19.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.53 ¥196

$53.4 ฿1,801

-44.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.14 ¥101

$24.64 ฿831

-38.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 ¥490

$91.5 ฿3,087

-19.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.6 ¥655

$71.9 ฿2,427

37.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$370 ¥2,459

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-63.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,375 ¥9,136

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-13.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ¥3,266

$590 ฿19.9K

-16.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

5.57

-37.88%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Longyan: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Longyan

$179 38.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 30.7% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Longyan

$98 21%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 11.3% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Longyan

$92 19.8%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 2.5% $2.3

Eating Out

Longyan

$76 16.4%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 1.7% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Longyan

$15 * 3.3%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 233% $35

Getting Around

Longyan

$4.2 * 0.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 1375% $57

Accommodation & Living

Longyan

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 20% higher in Chiang Mai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $23 in Longyan versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $179 in Longyan vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Longyan wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Longyan

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

03:25 3:25 AM

02:25 2:25 AM

1 h behind Longyan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,559,545

127,240

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 6.64 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Longyan Chiang Mai 1,980 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Longyan
Chiang Mai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Longyan vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 101% more than Longyan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $697 per month in Longyan and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $23 in Longyan and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 31% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $465 in Longyan and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $465 in Longyan to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Longyan. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.